Sabres' Konsta Helenius: Working through slump

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Helenius was held off the scoresheet for the 10th time in his past 12 AHL outings Tuesday.

Helenius has been something of a mixed bag in his rookie season with Rochester. He enjoyed a four-game goal-scoring streak from Nov. 1-8 and collected six assists across four appearances from Feb. 11-20, but he also went scoreless in seven of eight outings from Nov. 9-27, in addition to his recent slump. Some degree of inconsistency isn't shocking for a young player -- Helenius is still just 18 -- and especially for one transitioning to North American hockey. He previously recorded 14 goals and 36 points in 51 regular-season appearances with Jukurit Mikkeli of Finland's Liiga in 2023-24. It seems fair to believe that Helenius needs more time to develop in the minors, but he has a lot of potential. The Sabres selected him with the No. 14 overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.